Brian Foster vs. Forrest Petz at UFC Fight Night 22 in Texas

Another matchup has been added to the UFC Fight Night 22 card in the wake of a recent re-shuffling.

Welterweights Brian Foster (13-5 MMA, 1-2 UFC) and Forrest Petz (18-8 MMA, 2-4 UFC) have been added to the event’s preliminary card. Sources close to the event today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that verbal agreements are in place and contracts are expected shortly. ProFighting-fans.com first reported the pairing.

UFC Fight Night 22 takes place Sept. 15 at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas, and airs live on Spike TV.

UFC Fight 22 recently underwent a change for its main event when Alan Belcher suffered a detached retina and was forced to withdraw from a headlining bout against Demian Maia. In their place, middleweights Nate Marquardt and Rousimar Palhares, who were originally scheduled to meet at UFC 118, were slotted as the Sept. 15 event’s headliner, and Maia was re-booked to face Mario Miranda at UFC 118.

Foster returns to action for the first time since he broke his leg during a pick-up game of basketball in April. The H.I.T. Squad-trained fighter then told MMAjunkie.com that he would be out of action for six to eight weeks and hoped to return by August.

Foster is in dire need of a win inside the octagon. In his most recent appearance, he fought Chris Lytle at UFC 110 as a replacement for an injured Dong Hyun Kim and was submitted inside two minutes by a kneebar.

It was a disappointing turn for the hard-nosed fighter after he earned his first octagon victory with a second-round TKO of former WEC welterweight contender Brock Larson at UFC 106. That win put him on good footing after Rick Story submitted him in his promotional debut at UFC 103.

Petz, who trains with the Strong Style Fight Team in Independence, Ohio, could also use a bump in his second UFC stint. He was re-signed to the promotion on short notice and faced Daniel Roberts at UFC 116 when Roberts’ original opponent, Julio Paulino, withdrew due to injury. He lost the fight via split decision, which snapped a four-fight win streak in regional fight promotions.

Petz made four UFC appearances between 2006-2007 and went 2-3 inside the octagon with wins over Sammy Morgan and Luigi Fioravanti and losses to Marcus Davis, Kuniyoshi Hironaka and Josh Burkman.

Prior to his first UFC run, Petz defeated future welterweight contender Dan Hardy by decision at a regional fight show.

As the UFC 189 tour made its last stop in Dublin, featherweight champ Jose Aldo was met with a torrent of abuse from the Irish fans. It might have been unpleasant, but it might also have been just what he needed.